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IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe someone you know who is famous.

You should say:

• who this person is
• how you know him/her
• how long have you known him/her

and explain how he/she is famous.

Model Answer 1:
I think that everybody likes to talk about famous people, probably because we all like to identify with them in one way or another. So, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to talk about a famous person who, I think, has some really good reasons to be considered as famous.

The famous person, I am talking about, is a prominent and former sportsperson, a very good soccer/football player that is, from my city where I currently live in now. His name is David Fernando and he was already a famous person in my city and other areas because of his excellent footballing skills, but later on, he became equally famous also because of his extensive social works and philanthropic activities.

By the way, I came to know about this famous person probably about 15 years ago for the first time when he came to visit my high school at the invitation of our high school game teacher, apparently because he (our game teacher) wanted his students to become more interested and encouraged to play football. Prior to that, of course, I did hear about this famous person as a great footballer, but when I saw him and got to talk to him in person, I became really overwhelmed with immense joy and happiness.

However, one terrible accident (one of his legs became permanently damaged and weak) about 5 years ago ended his sports career, but since then, he has engaged himself with all kinds of philanthropic activities in my area. Needless to say, many people from my area, so far, have benefited from these philanthropic activities of his for the last 5 years or so.
 
Anyway, he is so famous in my area, mainly because he hasn’t only spent his own hard-earned money, earned as a very good football player, but also encouraged many others to do the same. Particularly, his contribution to running the biggest orphanage in my city, as well as helping in building one of the biggest private orthopaedic hospitals in my country, has made him famous.

Sample Answer 2:
My uncle, Oliver, is a professor of our local college and he is quite popular in our town. Not that he is a national celebrity, but he is very famous in our area and I am proud of being his nephew. Instead of talking about a nationally famous person, I would prefer to talk about my uncle.

He is my favourite uncle and I like him for his amiable behaviours and talent. He is a kind-hearted and benevolent man who is around 45 years old now. Since he is my father’s only brother and was very close to us, I know him my whole life. Personally, I am quite attached to this uncle and we often play chess together or enjoy movies in a theatre.

As far as I recall, he has always been famous in our town. He is known to his student as a talented math professor, to his colleagues he is an excellent person, to us, he is a great mentor and to others, he is a helpful and kind person. However, his fame extended beyond our city area for his achievement of a national award as the best math book writer. His book is used in grade seven as a national textbook and this single achievement has made him famous among many literary and educated societies in the country.  He was once been in the headline of many national daily newspapers which I still remember very clearly.

As far as I know, he is kind of an introvert and not after fame or popularity. He has very little interest in money or personal achievements. I had many long discussions with him and I have come to the decision that he leads an exemplary life and he is quite a happy person. Like many other famous people, he has no desire for personal achievements and his good deeds and talent have earned him respects and popularity. When people find out that I am his nephew they treat me differently and this single aspect clearly demonstrates how popular and respected he really is.

Sample Answer 3:
Fame does not come fast, rather it takes time, dedication and hard work. The people who have been famous, are sincere and hard workers. My cousin, Ali Karimi is also a famous person in my land, Iran. He is a footballer.

Ali Karimi is my maternal cousin and lives with his parents. He is now a popular footballer and midfielder in position. He is set to play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup as part of Irani football team. He had a great career in this short span of time. Currently, he is playing with Croatian club Dinamo Zagreb. He was keen to play football since his early age and finally, after 2010, he started shining in his career as a footballer. He signed with Sepahan, a football club in 2010 and played there in under-19. Karimi also played many leagues at home and abroad and thus he got selected for the national team of Iran for FIFA World Cup.   

I know him since my childhood. In fact, he is my cousin and used to live the next door of us in the same city in Iran. He was brilliant in academic studies and loved playing football. But he was troubled with my uncle as he did not want his son to be a footballer. So, often Karimi had to experience anger from his father on his football issues. But later, the attitude of my uncle towards football was changed to a great extent when he sensed the success of his son. In fact, he realised his mistakes that Karimi owns the potentials to be a great footballer. When uncle realised the issue, he helped Karimi in all possible ways.

Karimi is four years senior to me. He was born in 1994 and I was born in 1999. So, as per the calculation, Karimi is 22 now and I am 17. But age was not a barrier for us to form a very good relationship. Both of us share a strong bond and the bond is existing even today. He is a very caring brother to me and takes good care of almost all of my issues. He loves me as he loved his own sister. Though he is famous now across the country, he is amicable in his personal life and maintains a good relation with everyone regardless of his familiarity with them or not. Usually, celebrities are reluctant to have socialisation with the ordinary people but Karimi is different from them.

Karimi had to struggle a lot to gain his current position. His childhood was filled with obstacles. He was repressed by his family, especially his father did not want him to be a footballer. Rather he was instructed to be a scholar and then finally possess over their family business. But the liberal mind of Karimi was unable to follow the traditional ways of life. He wanted changes and take challenges. So, he tried hard to be a footballer. He started playing with the local clubs and finally got the chance to appear before the limelight. In this year, he has joined at Dinamo Zagreb and he is supposed to play for the club for the next five years. He is rich, he is famous but he is simple in his lifestyle. Hope he would be more successful in the coming days.

More Ideas to talk about this Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card topic:

Topic: Describe someone you know who is famous.

1. My college has a large compound and a few people are as famous as William. He is a champion of indoor sports. I know him because he is my classmate. I know him from the very first day I entered college here in Paris. William is famous because of his hard work. He is, in fact, a master of table tennis. In the past two years, none could defeat him in the matches. He is fast and knows very well how to play it. So, gradually, he became famous in college as a sports celebrity.

2. Anderson is a poet of this contemporary age. And I know him because he lives next door. He is a great poet indeed and his words are strong. I know him for the past five years. He rented the apartment before mine and rarely met him in person owing to my own occupational engagement. He is famous because his poems are published in newspapers and magazines. Often he is interviewed as well in mainstream media outlets.

3. Sophia is a news presenter on the local television channel here in Russia. I know her because she is my cousin. She is junior to me by two years and I know her since her birth. She is a kind of celebrity in our town. She has an extraordinary style of news presenting and her pronunciation is lucid. She also can manage situations in the newsroom very well. Considering all the grounds, she is a successful news presenter and a famous personality by her own qualification.

4. Usually, football players are famous in my country and Richard is one of them. He plays in under 20 leagues but has gained huge popularity indeed for his smooth performance. I know him for about a year ago, he came to me to meet some of his official needs. Richard is famous for his special style of scoring goals. He is also skilled in managing a team very well. Even he has been highlighted in some international sporting events held here in London.

5. "Hature" is a famous YouTube celebrity and he is my relative. I know him from a long ago and have subscribed his official channel on YouTube. He is basically famous for pointing out the contemporary issues and finding potential solutions to them. Some of his videos went viral because of the contents. He is also skilled in shaping up public opinions on critical issues so that they could be used to make a peaceful society.

Part 3: Two-way Discussion:

Q. Do you want to become famous?

Q. What kind of people can become famous in your country?

Q. What are the advantages and disadvantages of being famous?

Q. What do you think of the privacy of a well-known person?

Q. Would you be influenced by the well-known persons in TV commercials?

Q. What do you think of the relationship between a well-known person and advertising? 

• IELTS Cue Card
• Candidate Task Card

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